Ancient Greece - Thracian Chersonesus - AR Hemi Obol - Circa 515-493 BC
$1,196
Denomination: AR Hemi Obol (7mm)
Date: Circa 515-493 BC
Mint: Thrace. Chersoneses
Mount: 14K Gold
Grade: NGC Choice XF (6055214-145)
Description: THRACE. Chersoneses. Obverse: Forepart of lion right, head reverted. Reverse: Quadripartite incuse square. Scratches. These squares were used to hold the coin in place for the hammer strike on the obverse.
History: The lion, King of Beasts, was used prominently on ancient coins from the very inception of coinage, between 650 and 600 BCE. This Hemi obol was minted in Thracian Chersoneses, an Ancient Greek colony of 12 cities strategically located along shipping routes on the Northern Aegean Sea. The chersoneses Peninsula (modern-day Gallipoli, Turkey) was eventually ceded to Philip II of Macedon in 338 BCE after becoming the focus of a bitter terrestrial dispute between the King of Macedon and the Greek city of Athens. They had significant silver mines available and struck coins for mainly for trade purposes. Although lions are not indigenous to Greek lands, their image was used during the Greek Classical Period, and were widespread along the trade routes of the Black Sea.
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